"The only politician who knows my son is Gabriel Rufián."
His success on social media helps him position himself among the preferred politicians of young people.
Barcelona"The only politician who knows my son is Gabriel Rufián." That statement is probably an exaggeration in most cases, but surely almost everyone has heard a variation of it during Christmas dinners, when the conversation turns to politics. Rufián has become trending topic A politician in the State, as if a large part of the citizenry had suddenly discovered someone who has lived in Madrid for over ten years. Beyond family gatherings, the Rufián phenomenon is supported by data. The latest comes from the December barometer of the Center for Sociological Research (CIS), which demonstrates his popularity, above that of all other politicians to the left of the PSOE.
CIS Barometer of December 2025
Rufián surpasses every other left-wing representative (except Pedro Sánchez) when people are asked to choose who they want to be the next president of Spain. A year ago, no one in the CIS barometer mentioned Rufián. Six months ago, only 0.6% of respondents did. Today, that figure is above 5%, and Rufián is the fourth most popular politician to reach La Moncloa (the Prime Minister's official residence). The third most popular candidate is only found among those under 24 years old. "He's entering the space where, until now, the far-right sphere basically held sway," notes Jordi Muñoz, a professor of political science at the University of Barcelona. The same is true in Catalonia: the latest barometer from the Center for Opinion Studies (CEO) places him as the fourth most popular candidate to be president of the Generalitat (the Catalan government), very close to the third-place candidate, Oriol Junqueras.
"There's an audience that doesn't like the likes of Alvises or Vito Quiles... but feels bombarded by this content because that's what TikTok teaches them. And suddenly, there's a product that expresses itself in a similar language but says things that are closer to what they think. He's perhaps the only leader at this age," Muñoz adds. In recent months, Rufián's growth on TikTok has been exponential: he started the year with just over 170,000 followers and ended it approaching 500,000. On average, the last ten videos he's uploaded to this network have more than 220,000 views.
Rufián on social media
His team sees social media (TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and X) as the reason for Rufián's rise to prominence. These platforms amplify his speeches, which previously had a more limited impact, especially among young audiences. "Rufián hardly creates content for these networks, but when he speaks in Congress or gives an interview, he uses language not intended for a member of parliament or a journalist, but for an ordinary citizen," notes Xavier Tomàs, a political communication consultant. It is precisely the videos of these speeches that his team selects, edits, and publishes. Tomàs observes a similar strategy to the one Sílvia Orriols uses on social media, which is also helping her reach a wide audience, even beyond Catalonia.
"To be politically active, you have to be present on TikTok," says Elisa García Domingo, a professor of sociology at the Complutense University of Madrid. According to her, "the digital ecosystem has changed," and until now, only the far right benefited from it. Although Podemos has also dedicated efforts to social media, García doesn't believe that the influence of Irene Montero, the most successful figure in this space, can be compared to Rufián's. "He engages in emotional politics both in public speeches and on social media," she adds. Xavier Tomàs agrees, seeing Rufián's discourse as "much more left-wing than ERC," attempting to appeal to a protest vote that Podemos might have previously represented. "Rufián's success is possible because there are no similar role models on the left," Tomàs emphasizes.
The social media algorithm also bears a significant part of the responsibility for Rufián's recent success. Tomàs explains that, especially on TikTok, someone starting from scratch can quickly become successful because the algorithm doesn't consider their video history on the app. Jordi Muñoz emphasizes that phenomena like Rufián's on social media are not linear, but rather that suddenly "there can be changes in trends and exponential growth." On TikTok, Rufián's followers multiplied starting in July, without any apparent reason to explain the turning point. Algorithms, Muñoz continues, favor people who are already "active" on social media, especially when there is conflict. Sources from the ERC politician's team acknowledge that political polarization is one of the fundamental reasons for the current situation, but they highlight the content of his speeches, in which Rufián "doesn't offer magic solutions nor is he limited by saying what is politically correct."
Vito Quiles's Window
Rufián's penetration into the so-called fachofera Another notable chapter is the almost symbiotic relationship he has developed with the agitator Vito Quiles. Rufián, who initially opted not to respond to anyone in that media sphere, adapted his strategy when Quiles began to harass him in the street. "It was unintentional, but it has allowed us to reach places we never could have otherwise," acknowledges members of Rufián's team. These videos, in which Rufián employs sarcasm and irony, often garner hundreds of thousands of views.
His participation in popular national programs, such as when he went to The revolt in October or when he was interviewed in Évole's thing In March, it was also relevant that numerous state media outlets posted Rufián's speeches on their websites.
It doesn't resonate with older people
The Achilles' heel of Rufián's strategy is his lack of reach among older voters. His popularity declines after age 45, and among senior citizens, he lags far behind the main national leaders. "Young people are the segment of the population that votes the least and, therefore, are not the primary target of most politicians," Muñoz points out. "Breaking the far right's ideological hegemony in these spaces [social media] is very important. But, for a party mainstreamThis bet on virality on TikTok is insufficient. Elections aren't won there; they're won on television and by appealing to older people," he summarizes. "If someone can go viral talking about profoundly democratic ideas and social justice, we have to keep working along these lines," says García, who laments that political parties have abandoned the short-term focus on the next election, instead of betting on "profound social change" in the long term. When ERC decided to recruit Rufián in 2015, his impact on social media already carried significant weight. Everything usually has its pros and cons, and for any hierarchically managed party, having a free spirit like Rufián can sometimes cause headaches. "He gives us good things and some bad ones too, but the good things outweigh the bad," a senior party leader acknowledges in a conversation with ARA.